Page:Early western travels, 1748-1846 (Vol 1 1904).djvu/158

152 the lake, and eighteen miles up the Detroit river to the garrison of that name. The land on the lake side is low and flat. We passed several large rivers and bays, and on the 16th of August, in the afternoon, we arrived at Detroit river. The country here is much higher than on the lake side; the river is about nine hundred yards wide, and the current runs very strong. There are several fine and large islands in this river, one of which is nine miles long; its banks high, and the soil very good.

17th.—In the morning we arrived at the fort, which is a large stockade, inclosing about eighty houses, it stands close on the north side of the river, on a high bank, commands a very pleasant prospect for nine miles above, and nine miles below the fort; the country is thick settled with French, their plantations are generally laid out about three or four acres in breadth on the river, and eighty acres in depth; the soil is good, producing plenty of grain. All the people here are generally poor wretches, and consist of three or four hundred French families, a lazy, idle people, depending chiefly on the savages for their subsistence; though the land, with little labor, produces plenty of grain, they scarcely raise as much as will supply their wants, in imitation of the Indians, whose manners and customs they have entirely adopted, and cannot subsist without them. The men, women, and children speak the Indian tongue perfectly well. In the last Indian war the most part of the French were concerned in it, (although the whole settlement had taken the oath of allegiance to his Britannic Majesty) they have, therefore, great reason to be thankful to the English clemency in not bringing them to deserved punishment. Before the late Indian war there resided three nations of Indians at this place: the Putawatimes, whose